


my house

by hiya_zelda (hiya_girlie)



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Gen, Grief/Mourning, Post Game, let her be happy please, lowkey depressed zelda, tfw youve been fighting evil for so long that you don’t know what to do with yourself when it’s over
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:14:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25103752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hiya_girlie/pseuds/hiya_zelda
Summary: Zelda sees Link’s house for the first time, and remembers the mistakes she has made.
Relationships: Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 52





	my house

Zelda sat quietly, absently tracing her finger along the grain of the table. The wood looked fresh and new, without the stains it would receive from a long time of use. Likely it had come from one of the trees nearby, though she had noticed that all of the trees around Hateno Village were rather small. It must have taken several trees. Had Link made it himself? She didn’t think he had experience with carpentry, but perhaps he acquired the skill during his travels. She would have to ask him some time.

While she sat at the table, letting her thoughts wander farther and farther, Link stood over the cooking pot, humming softly to himself while he stirred the contents of the pot. His hair was pulled back in its usual low ponytail, which now that she had a moment to study was much longer than it had been, the ends dipping down his neck into the red shirt he wore. He wore no shoes, claiming to prefer being barefoot inside his house, although he hurried to assure her that she didn’t need to take off her own shoes, and he’d rolled his pant legs up to mid calf. If she hadn’t seen him single handedly take down the fiercest calamity Hyrule had ever seen, she would have assumed he was just a common village boy with his only care being what to have for dinner. It was a rather endearing sight.

She looked around the place he called his home. She’d been startled when he told her about it, how he’d walked into Hateno to find Purah and stumbled across the empty house tucked away from the main road, waiting to be demolished. He said something about the house seemed familiar to him, and that was why he had been so keen on buying it. Sitting in it now, she certainly couldn’t deny that she felt drawn to it as well.

His main room was a combination of kitchen and dining room. The kitchen was nothing like the large one at the castle, where dozens of stove tops and ovens lined the walls, cookware hung precariously from racks on the ceiling and people scurried about like mice. Rather it was a cozy affair, with a single stove and oven built into wooden counters, petite cabinets nailed to the wall, and a dining table large enough to seat six people, eight if the chairs were squished closely enough. 

As for decor, a small pot with fresh wildflowers rested in the window sill above the oven alongside a small hand carved figurine of a creature with a leafy face, matching the vase on the table. Display stands filled whatever wall space was leftover, boasting a variety of bows, shields, and assorted weapons of different makes. Her eyes widened as she examined the yellow and blue rod hanging on one stand, designed into a strange bolt shape. It glowed faintly, and she wondered if it had any special properties. Another thing she added to her mental list of questions to ask Link.

A small staircase joined the main room to the second floor that she had yet to see. She didn’t want to explore his house without permission, worried she might stumble across something personal, but her curiosity itched at her like a mosquito bite. 

“Link?” She asked. 

His ear twitched in a sign that he’d heard her, and he glanced at her over his shoulder, still stirring the pot. “Need something?”

“I was merely wondering if I could venture upstairs?” 

He paused as if thinking about something, then nodded. “It might be a little messy,” he said apologetically, “but go ahead. I don’t mind.”

Flashing him a grateful smile, Zelda stood from her chair and hurried past him to the stairs, taking one at a time. They creaked under foot and soon she found herself standing in what appeared to be his bedroom, which she was surprised by. Wouldn’t he have liked some sort of barrier to allow for more privacy, at least a curtain or even a door?

His bed was pushed into one corner, the sheets neatly made, and there was a nightstand next to it, covered in small keepsakes. Some of his belongings were scattered about on top of the desk and chair, and she noticed several articles of clothing laying in heaps on the floor and draped across the furniture. She stifled a small chuckle; it reminded her of the mess that was her study.

What caught her eye were the frames on the walls, one in particular. It was a perfect image of her, Link, and the four Champions just after their induction ceremony. She remembered getting swept away in Daruk’s crushing hug, being shoved up against Link, Mipha and Revali awkwardly falling in front of them, Urbosa laughing so hard she nearly fell over. Zelda smiled, reaching out and reverently touching the picture. What were the Champions doing these days? Would Urbosa be attending a sand seal race, would Revali being spending all of his time at the archery grounds, would Daruk be comparing the tastes of two rare rock roasts, would Mipha be showing the younger Zora how to fish?

Oh.

That was right. 

They were gone now.

She and Link were all that remained.

Zelda felt tired. A hundred years of holding back the Calamity was catching up with her. She pushed away the sadness and regret creeping into her thoughts as she took her place at the table again. She blinked away the tears pooling in the corners of her eyes. Her emotions were still quite raw, it seemed. She had thought that a hundred years would be plenty of time to grieve her losses, but she felt as though she was back in the past, running across Hyrule in the pouring rain with Link, fleeing from the wreckage of Hyrule Castle and praying to the goddesses that the Guardians wouldn’t find them. Her heart sped up at the thought, and it took every ounce of her willpower to keep her tears at bay. It was beginning to look like she might need another hundred years to cope.

“Your house is very lovely,” she said. “It feels very lived in.”

Link paused his stirring to give her a warm smile. “Yeah, I like it. It’s nice.”

“Do you think you’ll stay here?”

He tilted his head. “What do you mean?”

She paused, looking down at her hands. “Oh, I just… nevermind. It’s not important.” She didn’t want to bother him with her worries. 

Her stomach took the time to growl loudly, the smell wafting from Link’s pot drawing all of her attention.

“The food’s almost ready,” he said with a chuckle. “You must be starving.”

She spared a laugh at her own expense. “Well, I haven’t eaten in quite some time. I hardly even remember what food tastes like anymore.”

He removed the pot from the heat and set to filling two bowls with soup, carefully bringing them over to the table. He placed one in front of her and the other at his seat. “I thought so, so this is something real simple. Not a lot of flavor, just something warm and hearty to put some warmth in your body.”

She didn’t have to force a smile as she examined the contents of her bowl. The broth was steamy and smelled rich, cubes of carrot and radish floating alongside squares of meat. It wasn’t any castle feast, but it was all the same. “Thank you,” she said, inclining her head, “it looks wonderful.”

They ate in silence, keeping their heads down until their bowls were empty. Just as Link promised, the soup left her chest filled with a comforting warmth, like she was curled up by a fireplace. The silence was soft and peaceful; it gave Zelda some time to think. Think about what she was going to do with herself now that her life’s purpose was finally fulfilled, about what she could do to help Hyrule and right her wrongs. She almost couldn’t bear the thought of going to Impa. She didn’t want to be reminded of her duties as princess. Maybe Link would allow her to stay with him for a time until she found it in herself to put her life back together.

“Link?” She asked, looking up at him. 

“Yeah?”

“Would you… mind terribly if I stayed here with you for awhile? I think I just… I need some time.” She left the rest of the sentence unspoken. She felt he could understand her meaning.

She was startled by the quick nod he gave in reply. “Of course,” he said simply. His eyes were knowing. “I hope you know that my house is your house.”

A sensation of peace settled over her. Yes, she would take some time to think, and reflect, and rest, and then she could start anew with Link by her side. “Thank you. That’s very kind.”

He smiled again, then stood to take care of their empty bowls. The house fell back to quiet as he cleaned the dishes, and she went back to tracing lines on the table. 

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly idk what to say about this, just something I found in my google docs that looked promising and well. I think Zelda needs a hug. Probably more than one.
> 
> Thanks for reading (*´꒳`*)


End file.
